With every action there is an equal and opposite reaction. Several days ago elEconomista published a story about the Marca España marketing campaign, where Carlos Espinosa de los Monteros was asking big private companies listed on the Ibex for money with which he would create a private foundation "backed by the government."
We reported on the issue and publicly denounced the High Commissioner's use and abuse of Marca España project and the Secretary of State's sketchy dealings. He has been asking each and every company, or at least ten of them, for 200,000 euros to help promote these companies outside of Spain.
The companies ares so indignant and sick of being used to pad political pockets that Espinosa de los Monteros was forced to abandon the project. Even though this was a delayed reaction, it has still hurt Spain's name.
Carlos Espinosa de los Monteros has abused his power to try and create an entity that had no clear purpose. If he had created his publicity house, what would have been the point of the Secretary of State's foreign sector marketing efforts? Also, having redundant programs when the state is trying to cut back on spending does not make any sense.
As if all this were not enough, the High Commissioner wanted Juan Miguel Villar Mir, the president of OHL, to manage the Marca España foundation. This was a surprising choice considering that the construction company was charged with giving illegal contributions to People's Party campaigns. We should think long and hard about what happened, because if the Marca España campaign does not work, wouldn't it be wise to shut it down?
